KM Viray
University of the Philippines (UP) student and netizen Sabrina Chloe Reyes posted a shared photo online, showing the experiences of UP students during registration and enrollment.
The photo showed students lined up by the registration areas in their sleeping bags, apparently spending the night to be first in line among the very many students anxious to complete their class load and get slots for their much needed subjects for the semester.
Reyes began her post by quoting those who would question and mock the efforts of such students: “Paano ba enrollment sa UP? Bakit kayo reklamo ng reklamo eh mura na nga tuition niyo? Saka online na lahat ‘di ba? [How is the enrollment process in UP? You all keep complaining even though you only pay for a small amount for your tuition and everything is done online.]”
Reyes proceeds to list down the flaws she saw in the university’s enrollment process.
In the photo are Economics students camping out to fight for slots to get their major subjects. But why do students have to risk camping out just to get subjects that should be allotted for them automatically in the first place?
Another scenario she described was students not getting any units at all for four semesters despite the university having online enlistment and Computerized Registration System (CRS) batch runs. Batch runs determine at random which of the students who pre-enlisted in each class will get a slot for those classes. Pre-enlistment is when the students state the subjects they want to take for the following semester.
Unfortunately, some batch runs do not work out. Students like Reyes are then forced to go to campus as early as 4 a.m. just to line up and hope to get a slot for their subjects.
Worst of all, for graduating students again like Reyes, one of her classes got cancelled by a CRS administrator after the second batch run without any prior notice, supposedly because the college offering the class changed the designation. Reyes was left to find another subject which she has to fight for.
“I don’t get why UP is STILL blind to the major flaws of its enrollment procedure,” Reyes says. “Why do its own students have to SUFFER just to get classes THEY ARE PAYING FOR? Why are some graduating students given a HARD TIME to get the subjects they need to finish school?”
The online enrollment system is supposed to be a way for students not to have to line up or fight for important subjects, particularly for their major ones. In the previous years, students looked for slots manually which was a tedious and somewhat nerve-wracking chore. Students should not have to beg to get units or be accepted in classes which they rightfully must take. Hopefully, the system gets straightened out and priority be given to graduating students who might miss getting their diploma.
